After opening the 2016 season with a win over the Ignacio Bobcats (0-1, 0-0 San Juan Basin League), the Montezuma-Cortez Lady Panthers (2-3, 0-0 Intermountain League) competed in the Glenwood Tournament last weekend.
The Panthers got out to a rocky start against Steamboat Springs (3-2, 0-0 4A Western Slope), falling in their first set, 25-8.
“We came out flat against Steamboat,” said head coach Dave Robinson. “We got absolutely spanked in the first game, 25-8. But then we came back, so the girls showed quite a bit of guts coming back from a real defeating game to come back and play really well.”
The Panthers lost the second set, 25-21, but Robinson saw improvements and the team carried momentum into its second matchup against the Grand Valley Cardinals (2-2, 0-0 3A Western Slope)
“We were hitting a lot better, covering our blocks and they were doing all the basics that we ask them to do,” he said of his team’s play against Grand Valley. “So it was really nice to see them really take what we saw as our defficiences in the first game and improve on them.”
The Panthers dropped the first set, 25-23, but bounced back to win game two 25-21 and force a third.
After falling 15-12 in the third set to lose to Grand Valley, 2-1, the Lady Panthers found their groove in their third matchup against Rifle (1-4, 0-1 4A Western Slope), winning in two straight sets, 25-18 and 25-10.
Danielle McDonald was a force at the net – finishing with eight blocks and four kills – Skylar Robinson served up nine assists and Tyra Pinnecoose and Rylee Lindsley each had eight digs.
“Everything was on at that point,” said Robinson. “Our serves were great, our hitting was great and it helps when everybody is on the same page.”
M-CHS fell in two straight to Denver Christian (2-2, 0-0 2A District 4) in their final contest to finish the weekend 1-3, but Robinson said the tournament was a great experience for his team early in the season.
“We were getting to see quite a mixture of classifications and teams that we won’t normally see,” he said. “I thought the tournament was very beneficial for that.”
Next, the Panthers will see familiar foes in the Durango Demons (0-2, Southwestern League) and Monument Valley Mustangs (0-1, 0-0 3A North).
M-CHS hosted Durango on Thursday – results were unavailable at the time of printing – before traveling to Monument Valley (AZ) on Tuesday, September 13.
